Part 1 defined and exposed strongholds intertwined in our belief structures. This writing presents how one can be free of this mental straightjacket and maintain deliverance.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 NKJV

 ³ For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.

⁴ For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,

Strongholds are:

• Mental or emotional space controlled by the spiritual enemy that he uses as a staging area to wage war against you and God.
• A spiritual fortress made up of erroneous thoughts that take root in your soul fortified by demonic forces that empower these thoughts into actions.

Sample List of Strongholds

• Pride
• Rebellion
• Negativity
• Gender Confusion
• Hatred 
• Selfishness
• Addictions
• Depression
• Domination
• Indifference
• Jealousy/Envy
• Poverty
• Sexual immorality
• Religion
• Generational Choices/Curses

Strongholds are Fortified

The enemy continually works to fortify these strongholds by:

• Presenting repetitive temptations that reinforce the stronghold
• Placing you in the company of people with similar strongholds so you will feed off each other
• Making you embarrassed by it so you keep it under wraps and will not seek help
• Exposing you to sister strongholds with the hopes you will pick up additional ones
• Causing you to minimize the stronghold or not believe it is an issue at all
• Changing the culture from God-centric to human-centric
• Implementing policies and laws to support desired deviant behavior
• Subliminally feeding and saturating public airways with the “new culture” group think

Pulling Down Strongholds

The Principles of Binding and Loosing

Matthew 16:18-19 NKJV

¹⁸ And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 

¹⁹ And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

He gave this power to Peter and he gave it to us. We have the power to bind and loose.

Matthew 12:29 NKJV

²⁹ …how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

The “strong man” is the evil spirit who protects and fortifies the stronghold. His “goods”, are those whose minds he is holding captive. This scripture is prescriptive.

1. You must bind the spirit first.
2. Then you can go about to dismantle the stronghold and free the captive.

Binding the Strongman

Step#1 – Identify the stronghold and you will identify the strong man.

Honesty is required when identifying the stronghold.

Psalm 139:23-24 KJV

²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

²⁴ And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

“Wicked way” speaks to a stronghold–an established pattern of detrimental behavior.  

When you know what the stronghold is you will know what spiritual forces are at work. Spiritual forces such as fear, poverty, lust, gluttony, guilt, hatred, etc.

Some people have strongholds that have become so much a part of their lives that they do not recognize it as such because it has become who they are. For example, this occurs with hoarders, the recluse, and sluggards.

Step #2 – Bind the strong man by employing your weapons, (Ephesians 6:10-18).

Weapon #1 – Declare God’s Word over the stronghold.

The strong man cannot hold you hostage due to past sins.

No guilt trip! 

Romans 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

You are a conqueror.

Romans 8:37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

You have been given authority to assert yourself and defeat the enemy.

Luke 10:19-20 NKJV

¹⁹ Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. 

²⁰ Nevertheless do not rejoice in this… the spirits are subject to you…

Mark 16:17-18 NKJV

 ¹⁷ And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 

¹⁸ they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

2 Corinthians 10:5
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.

Deuteronomy 28:7
The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.

Isaiah 54:17
“No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confound every tongue that rises against you in judgment….

Weapon #2 – Use The Name of Jesus

Demons recognize Jesus

Jesus came upon a man filled with demons. The demons recognized Jesus and asked Him not to torment them.

Mark 5:1-11

Selected verses 6,7

⁶ When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 

⁷ And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.”

Evil spirits are subject to the name of Jesus

Luke 10:17 NKJV

¹⁷ Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”

Evil spirits will respect your name if you live according to the Word of God

Acts 19:14-16 NKJV

¹⁴ Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.

¹⁵ And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

¹⁶ Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded

They had no life to support authorization to use the name and hence were recognized and treated as hijackers! 

Weapon #3 – Power in the Blood of Jesus

Revelation 12:11 NKJV

¹¹ And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

Satan is defeated by the blood Jesus shed on Calvary and when the blood is applied on you,  he is defeated by the life you live as a living testimony to the saving power of God.

Weapon #4 The Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit is simply and powerfully God in us. Not a watered-down version, but completely and fully God in us.

You have power.

Acts 1:8 NKJV

⁸ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you…”

1 John 4:4
…greater he [Holy Spirit] who is in you than he [the devil] who is in the world.

Weapon #5 Prayer

Seek out partnership with prayer warriors to commit in prayer with you. Be diligent and persistent.

Employ fasting. Fasting trains your soul to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 18:19 NKJV

¹⁹ “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.

James 5:16 NKJV

¹⁶ Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

Weapon # 6 Praise and Worship

The enemy came against King Jehoshaphat. The king and the people were in distress, sought God and fasted.

2 Chronicles 20:1-22 NKJV

Selected verses 12, 15, 21, 22

¹² …for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.

¹⁵ …Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.

²¹ And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.

²² And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, ….and they were smitten.

God caused their enemies to turn on one another and the only effort Israel expended was gathering the spoil. They spoiled their enemy with praise and worship.

Weapon# 7 Thanksgiving

Philippians 4:6 NKJV

⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

All that was presented are components of binding the strongman. Now let’s address once he is bound, freeing the prisoner… you!

Deliverance – Freeing Yourself from the Stronghold

Step #1

Identify the origin of the stronghold.  Here’s where you determine how you came about the stronghold and under what circumstances it began?

Was it–

• Trauma? – tragedy, domination, abuse, heartbreak, repetitive negative labeling
• Soul tie? – cultivation of a bad relationship
• Sin? – witchcraft, traditional beliefs, new age beliefs, etc.
• Religion? – Neo-Pharisee, manipulation, cultish behaviors
• Hatred? – generated from ethnic and/or social groups

Step#2

Remove yourself from influences that continue to fortify that stronghold.

Example:

Someone owed me money for years. I said I had forgiven the debt but I held onto the carbon copy of the check I had given them. When I went through that area of my file, I’d pick it up and look at it probably not with a pleasant face. But I forgave them! The Lord spoke to my heart one day and said “If you forgave, then why are you still handling it, looking at it, and keeping it. Throw it away!” I ripped it up and threw it away.

There are some things that we keep as reminders but they are acting as a yoke around your neck that will not allow you to release that incident keeping you bound.

Look around your house. Are there keepsakes or items that feed your stronghold?

Step#3

Take the necessary practical steps to unravel the stronghold.

This could include therapeutic counseling.

The stronghold wasn’t built overnight and it may not come down overnight. You can pray over a situation continuously but you must do the work that unravels that stronghold.

Paul said in James 2:18

¹⁸But someone will say, You have faith, and I have works. Now you show me your [alleged] faith apart from any [good] works, and I by [good] works will show you my faith.

²⁰Faith without works is dead.

The wisdom of this principle applies here. Prayer and fasting without putting the work in to undo the stronghold is useless.

Maintaining Deliverance

Put on the Whole Armor of God

Ephesians 6:11-12 NKJV

¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles [schemes] of the devil. 

¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

His schemes starts when you are young and when you are vulnerable. It is a spiritual battle to obtain deliverance and it is a spiritual battle to hold the ground you have gained. Such is war. A soldier never removes his uniform when in battle.

Your Uniform (Ephesians 6:14-18)

• Belt of Truth
• Breastplate of Righteousness
• Feet fitted with the Gospel of Peace
• Shield of Faith
• Helmet of Salvation
• Sword of the Spirit
• Pray in the Spirit

Positive Confessions

Positive confessions build your faith.

Matthew 17:20

So Jesus said to them, … if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.

Stay in the Word

Joshua 1:8-9 NKJV

⁸ This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 

Crucify the Flesh

Galatians 2:20

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Paul continues to says “I die daily” 1 Corinthians 15: 31. Develop a lifestyle of prayer.

Stay Alert

1 Peter 5:8
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

2 Corinthians 11:14-15 NKJV

¹⁴ And no wonder! For Satan… transforms himself into an angel of light. ¹⁵ Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness…

James 4:7

Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

If you are not all the way in, you leave yourself open for infiltration.

Romans 12:1-2 NKJV

¹…present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 

² And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

1 Corinthians 6:20 NKJV

²⁰For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Conclusion

Some strongholds are obvious and some are not. It’s not enough to be delivered. Not only should you fill the empty spaces with the Spirit (things of God) but you must continue to work the works of deliverance.

Why? Because of the Law of Muscle Memory

Having performed a particular act repetitively for years there is brain and muscle memory.

When the strong man spirits are cast out they leave behind years of behavioral training prompted by triggers.

So be mindful that deliverance is a process and it requires therapeutic work as well as Spirit.

Nothing presented is a silver bullet that will evaporate the stronghold. Strongholds did not attach themselves overnight, neither will the eradication be instantaneous. It is much like brain surgery but from a spiritual perspective. It takes time, therapy and spiritual intervention.